Ants and using antrid with reptiles

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KaotikJezta

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I have just found a bunch of ants all over my woma females enclosure and starting to crawl on her. I am scared I may end up with so many they could potentially kill things like my golden tails. Can I use ant rid safely? My main concern is my lizards ingesting ants that have eaten it.
 
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I wouldnt be using any chemicals like antrid inside the enclosure, but I would find where they are coming from and how they are getting to and into the enclosure, and I would be spraying surface spray on the floor/walls where they are coming into the house, where they are tracking towards the enclosure and on the floor around the enclosure (but not in the enclosure itself of course) The ants wont want to walk on the surface sprayed floor, so they wont be able to get to the enclosure.

Cinnamon powder is also a good ant killer. Put some cinnamon powder in like soft drink bottle lids where they are coming in the house. The ants will take it back to the nest and it kills them.
 
I wasnt suggesting you would put it in the enclosure.... it was more to cover my butt.... so no one could suggest I was saying you should spray it in the enclosure ;)

I dont know if a snake ate an ant that had eaten antrid, or walked on the ground with surface spray on it..... but if you spray the floor where the ants are getting in and between that point and the enclosure..... the ants wont reach the enclosure for the snake to eat them ;)

I would be suprised if a snake died from ingesting a few ants that have encountered some form of chemical.... I would assume they would have to eat a couple of kilos of ants to get enough quantity of the chemicals to be dangerous to them.... but this is only my uneducated opinion. I personally would rather prevent the ants getting to my snake, then he wouldnt have the opportunity to ingest any of them.

I personally would use a reputable (possibly low alergenic if it is made) surface spray, rather than antrid..... or cinnamon which is a spice not a chemical.;)
 
Peppermint essence is a natural deterrant.
Mix with some warm water and wipe down surfaces with it.
 
You have a choice of natural deterrents that ants don't like, such as cinnamon, vinegar, mint leaves or solution and cloves. The short fall of these is that the ants will often find a way around it. You a number of contact insecticides, such as the one mentioned. Or you can go to Bunnings and buy some Coopex which you have to make up and spray. Those ants making it back to the nest are groomed within the nest and this kills both lots of ants. I have not found AntRid very effective with our problem ants. But if yours are taing the bait they will carry it back to the nest where the queen will also feed on it and that will destroy the nest.

I would put a few bodies on sticky tape, pop into an envelope and sent of to the local Ag. Dept. Branch. It is a free service and they will tell you what they are and also the most effective control. Most of the ants that enter houses are foreign pest species.


Blue

 
I've had a problem with ants earlier in the year, it turned out there was a poo behind a hide and once i had cleaned that up they went away. I just learnt that i need to clean any urates or poos away within 12hrs or i will get ants, which is better for the snake anyway. So i would do a full clean just to check you haven't missed something they could be feeding on. The other thing is that ants follow scent trails, so it may be worth wiping the area (walls of cage on inside and outside, anywhere where you have seen ants walking) with just water or with a bit of F10 and water then they shouldn't be able to find there way back but if there is still something attracting them they will just keep coming back.

it is possible that you may be able to get rid of the ants with out trying to kill them, but it depends why they are going into the cage
 
I've bought those little organza bags from the $2 shop and filled them with dried bay leaves and whole cloves. Tie them up and hang or place them around the place. No more insects of ANY sort. Best of luck with them. ;)
 
I would still strongly recommend that you find out what species you are dealing with. I would be particularly concerned over the fact they were swarming on one of your reptiles. There was a thread a month or two back where someone lost sizeable pythons to ants. I myself have lost a small dragon that feeds pimarily on ants. If it is likely to be a danger to your pets the Ag Dept will tell you and inform you of the most effect means of control. They have this information at their finger tips to protect livestock industries.

Blue
 
Ants ain't ants. Some love sweet food such as sugar, others prefer protein (meat), some are omnivorous. First thing to do is identify the species of ants you're dealing with and then look for an appropriate bait. Baiting is far more effective (long-term) that direct kill with sprays. Talk to entomologists, not to pest controllers - they know SFA about ants.
 
another one!! haha I was like *** when I started to get a problem with ants. My ants are weird, they periodically enter the enclosure when there's a poo or a rat that has not been eaten quick enough etc. They don't seem to bother my animals and thankfully not in plague proportions at the moment so thanks for posting! very helpful
 
Advion ant gell is a good bait but, your better off finding the nest and treating it and then using the gel aswell you will get adequet control of the poulation. If it is out side your house its easy with liquid chemical and ant granuals such as Brigade. If its inside your house its a bit harder as the best method i've found is using a Dust called Dragnet and get it pumped into the voids of your house. But you should take all the animals and there enclosures out while this happens espesily if your have gaps beetween your cieling and roof void. (house rules only)

Contact a expert pest manager (those with more than a weeks training and only know how to spray your skirting boards) A Pest Manager studies entomology as part of their trade.

Oh i forgot you cant get those chemicals without a licence from the Department of Health.
 
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